Leyte village chief slain

SAN ISIDRO, Leyte — Leyte Third District Representative Anna Tuazon is appealing to the National Bureau of Investigation and the Philippine National Police to conduct a thorough investigation into the killing of a barangay captain in Leyte, Leyte last Thursday.

Reports said that Barangay Mataloto chairperson Mary Ann Orillano was a motorcycle passenger on her way home after submitting the Daily Time Record of beneficiaries of the TUPAD from a nearby village when they were shot with an armalite at around 4 p.m. by a lone gunman.

Orillano died on the spot, while the driver, identified as Joel Gonzales, died a few hours later, but not before describing the gunman to responders.

The village chief is the first casualty since the filing of candidacies for the 2025 local and national elections in the third district of Leyte, which has a long history of election-related violence that prompted Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) Secretary Jonvic Remulla to identify it as an election hotspot.

“We are outraged and condemn the brutal murder of Mataloto Kap Mary Ann “Em” Bacunawa Orillano. No one has the right to summarily murder a civil servant doing her job, depriving her young child and her constituents of all that she could be for them,” Tuazon said in a statement.

Meantime, Leyte provincial board member Kathryn Kabigting described the killing as brutal and hinted that the perpetrator could be coming from the same village as the victim since he was aware of the official’s schedule for that day.

Kabigting said Orillano is one of the active members of “Grupo Han Pagbag-o (Group for Change),” which is composed of civic leaders, professionals, and the majority of the barangay captains supporting the mayoral candidacy of businessman Jed Granados against incumbent Mayor Noli Ysidoro.

Grupo Han Pagbag-o is also supporting the reelection of Tuazon and Kabigting for their respective positions.

Tuazon is also asking the Commission on Human Rights to investigate the killing of Orillano as well as the previous political killings in the district.

“We call upon our law enforcers and prosecutors to cause the swift filing and prosecution of the case, ensuring that justice is promptly dispensed,” Tuazon said.

Meanwhile, Granados is appealing to the Leyte Police Provincial Office to deploy more policemen, especially in the hinterland villages, to enhance visibility and deter the commission of another political killing.